1. Field of Invention
This invention relates generally to a removable, adjustable, compact, light weight, durable attachment for trailer hitches. This attachment allows an operator of the towing vehicle to precisely back the towing vehicle into the proper aligned position so that coupling the towing vehicle to the trailer by the trailer hitch is simple and easily done by a single individual in any weather or lighting conditions.
2. Background Information
Trailers are towed on the highways by different types of vehicles. These trailers must necessarily be coupled or hitched to the towing vehicle which provides the motive power. Consequently a variety of ways of coupling a trailer to a towing vehicle have been devised. For large commercial trucks, there are hitches that are specially designed to be self-guiding, so that a single operator of the backing vehicle may easily complete the coupling process whereby the trailer is coupled to the towing vehicle. These types of self-guiding hitching systems are primarily found in commercial uses.
However, many individuals own a trailer. The trailer may be a camper home, boat trailer, or a utility trailer used to move furniture, garden supplies, and the like. Those who own these trailers rarely, if ever, have a specially dedicated vehicle that is used exclusively for towing these trailers. Rather, a car, pickup truck, sport utility vehicle, or station wagon, which is used for other purposes is adapted to be used to tow the trailer by means of an add-on trailer hitch. Ordinarily, on the towing vehicle the trailer hitch consists of a trailer ball mounted within a few inches of the rear bumper and at approximate bumper height. At the front end of the trailer terminating the draw bar is a cup or ring designed for receipt of the trailer ball. The ball of the trailer hitch on the back of the towing vehicle fits within the cup or ring on the draw bar of the trailer to be towed. Usually, there is some sort of locking device which helps secure the ball into the cup. The trailer is designed so that the wheels on the trailer are located between the center of gravity of the trailer and the rear end of the trailer. This means that the draw bar will be forced by the weight of the trailer toward the ground. It is ordinarily supported off the ground by a jack-like device that terminates at the ground end in a small wheel. The jack-like device is ordinarily operated by a crank which raises and lowers the draw bar of the trailer, so that the height of the cup or ring which receives the trailer hitch ball mounted on the towing vehicle may be varied by the operator by cranking the jack supporting the draw bar of the trailer either up or down, depending on the need of the operator. For safety reasons, the tongue weight of the draw bar of the trailer ordinarily must be, at least, fifty (50) pounds. For large trailers, it can be substantially more. Therefore, lifting the draw bar of the trailer without the use of the crank or moving the draw bar laterally requires considerable strength. Indeed, the strength required may be beyond that of most people for larger trailers or trailers that are heavily loaded. However, the tolerance of the receiving cup or ring on the draw bar and the ball on the towing vehicle trailer's hitch must be quite close in order that the attachment of the trailer to the towing vehicle be secure. Therefore, the ball of the trailer hitch of the towing vehicle must be positioned within a fraction of an inch immediately below the cup or ring on the draw bar of the trailer if the hitching process is to be successful.
Therefore, the process of hitching a towing vehicle to a trailer can sometimes be quite difficult and laborious. This is especially true if only one individual is involved in the hitching process. It can also be complicated by rainy weather, by attempting to hitch in an area with little maneuvering room, or attempting to hitch at night. Without some device to aid in alignment during the backing process, often the operator of the vehicle will have to make a number of attempts in which the vehicle is first backed, then moved forward and backed again, while the operator of the towing vehicle must get out of the vehicle and go to the rear of the vehicle to visually inspect the alignment of the hitching ball to the receptive cup on the draw bar of the trailer. Consequently, there is a need for a guide which can provide immediate feedback to the operator of the towing vehicle as he or she is attempting to back the vehicle into place beneath the draw bar of the trailer so that the coupling can be completed.
A variety of devices have been proposed to aid with alignment of a backing vehicle so that the coupling elements of the hitch are in appropriate position to complete the hitching process. For example, the Bennett patent, U.S. Pat. No. 3,774,149, involves a rod guide mounted to the trailer hitch connection on the towing vehicle, which includes an electric light. Likewise, mounted to the ball coupler on the draw bar of the trailer is a rod. Both rods extend upward. They are located so that as the backing vehicle approaches the appropriate position a spring-mounted electrical switch is activated causing the light visible to the operator of the backing vehicle to go on. The Fenner patent, U.S. Pat. No. 3,418,628, involves an electrical light and switch mounted on a rod. The light and switch are mounted by means of a ball that fits within the cup connection on the draw bar of the trailer. As the operator of the vehicle backs his vehicle into position, the hitch ball will activate a switch causing a light visible to the operator to go on once the operator of the vehicle has placed his ball hitch in hitching position below the trailer cup. The Riggs patent, U.S. Pat. No. 4,856,200, involves a pointer assembly for mounting on the rear portion of a vehicle. A target assembly is mounted on the tongue of the trailer. As the operator of the towing vehicle backs his vehicle, the pointer assembly attached to his vehicle will touch an arc shaped surface positioned on the target assembly, which activates a light or other means to indicate that appropriate alignment has been achieved. A somewhat different approach is seen in the Fath, IV, patent, U.S. Pat. No. 5,290,056. There, a surrogate ball and cup assembly are respectively mounted to the back of the towing vehicle and the tongue of the trailer. The surrogate ball and cup assembly are elevated so that they are visible to the operator of the backing vehicle. They are designed to replicate the positions of the ball on the towing vehicle and the cup on the trailer. Thus, when the surrogate ball and cup are aligned, the actual ball and cup are in the same alignment. Despite these earlier efforts, none of the above referenced patents have proven practical in operation and none have enjoyed substantial commercial success.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to remedy the perceived deficiencies in earlier devices. It is an object of the current invention to provide a trailer alignment guide which is simply and easily constructed of readily available materials. It is an object of the current invention to adjust so that it can be used on different styles of towing vehicles, including cars, truck, vans, sport utility vehicles, station wagons, or virtually any other vehicle that is commonly used by individuals to tow a trailer used for recreational or utility reasons. It is an object of the current invention to function even if the towing vehicle is backed at an oblique angle to the trailer if such is required by the operator. It is an object of the current invention to provide continuous visual feedback to the operator of the vehicle during the backing process, and to provide both a visual and sound feedback to the operator of the vehicle when the appropriate position is reached for coupling of the trailer cup to the towing vehicle ball. It is an object of the current invention to be easily attached and detached for use, to be light weight, durable, compact, to require no special technical expertise to use, and to be easy to use and foolproof in operation.